Hester Shaw (Regime)
:This article concerns the despotic High Councillor Hester Shaw in the alternate Hellcat Squadran universe. For the non-despotic, Earth-based version of Hester Shaw seen in the mainstream Hellcat Squadran universe, see Hester Shaw High Councillor Hester Shaw (sometimes known as High Councillor Hester Natsworthy or High Councillor Hester Mancini) is from Mortal Engines, but in the fictional alternate Regime universe, as head of her own Regime, with its center in the TRAPPIST-1 System. History Early life Hester was born on Oak Island, on planet TRAPPIST-1g. When she was around seven years old, Antonio Mancini attacked her parents, specifically her mother Pandora, under orders from Elexis Sinclaire, owner of TRAPPIST-1e's largest multi-national biotechnology corporation known as SinTEK. Both her mother and David Shaw, the man Hester thought to be her father, were killed. Hester disturbed Mancini while he was killing her mother. Flustered, Mancini swung around and struck Hester's face with his sword, causing her to fall back down the stairs and leaving her with scars that would last her entire lifetime. Confused, she ran away, followed by Mancini's men. Mancini achieved his objective and left, thinking she was dead. Hester got on her parents' boat and left, hoping to find a doctor. She woke up on the shores, where she was found by Martin Cross. She spent the rest of her childhood living with Pierce aboard a scavenger town. After several years, she left to try to find and kill Mancini. Ascension to power After several years of searching, Hester finally made it on TRAPPIST-1e, where Freeport was located. There, a bank heist occured shortly thereafter, and HardCorps sent Colonel John Blade, backed by his hacking partner, J.C. Armack, there. During this heist, Hester tried to stab Mancini, but Tom blocked the blow and chased her through the city. In order to escape HardCorps, she jumped down through Freeport's sewers. Mancini then pushed Tom after her. Elexis only intended for Mancini to steal a safety deposit box from the bank's vault, and upon learning that he launched a full-scale heist instead, she injected him with concentrated U4, transforming him into a mutant, and sent him after Blade and Hester. After Blade killed the huge creature, she discovered a drug called "U4". Blasting her way into SinTEK's main headquarters around the same time as Blade, Hester killed Elexis by stabbing her through her chest. She didn't pursue Gianni Manero and Viktor Radek. She instead returned to the Jenny Haniver. Hester tried to comfort Tom, who was guild-ridden and in shock from the outcome of events occured on Elexis's henchmen. As they both realised that they had nothing left but their vessel, they began their new life together as dictators. At the same time, Hester related all conflicts to her own tragedy and became aware about big people ruining too many lives all the time. She decided to put a stop to this, so she ordered Tom to draft up the documents necessary for the establishment of her Regime. Hester moved onto newer forms of arms progression and commissioned Gabriel Kantor to create Project Bespin, resulting in a new line of Bespin heavy armed stormers, similar in respect to the UGSF counterparts. If successful, the project would allow the Regime to conduct long-range strikes against "big people" she was standing up to with a minimized loss of fleet assets. Tom and Hester visited the nebula system beyond Gamma Draconis in search of the Shivans for some time before being able to communicate with a Shivan task force, accompanied by the UIMS ships, which met with them in the nebula. At the same time, Hester discovered a new type of Chronon-based life form, Shifters. From the Jenny Haniver, Hester saw Blade infiltrating her outpost with a small strike team consisting of several HardCorps officers, including recruit Jessica Cannon. Enraged at not only the violation of her home and the danger her belongings are in, Hester ordered their battleship to open fire and deploy forces. Hester was forced to go down to the surface and take her fight to Jessica. She and the HardCorps recruit fought in the Hunting Ground's plain fields, with Jessica successfully bringing Hester to her knees. As Jessica prepared to deliver the final blow, Freya Rasmussen comes to Hester's aid, slicing through Jessica's back with her sword. Jessica, realizing she would detonate herself and take anyone with her, tried to remind Hester of making the right choices. Refusing to listen, Hester tried to break Jessica's hand that held her by the neck. Chiding Hester and reminding her that she's already as good as dead, Jessica ran with a struggling Hester in tow, Freya hot on their heels. Hester managed to force off Jessica with a pepper spray and escaped before Jessica's detonation. After Jessica's death, Hester radioed Tom to prepare for her immediate extraction before heading for her outpost. Hester then fought against the HardCorps officers. During the fight, Betruger slipped away, shot Tom, and stole the Jenny Haniver, leaving Hester and Tom stranded. However, one of the Regime troopers informed Hester that Blade and his team escaped with her belongings. When they reached Freeport, Hester immediately attacked HardCorps HQ, just as Blade and J.C. had begun to discuss the findings. She shut down the power in the building, and personally injured Blade. Lieutenant Jack Joyce then arrived, having responded to the attack. He knocked Hester down and repeatedly beat her up. She regained conciousness and escaped just in time before more HardCorps officers showed up. The next day, a still bruised Hester announced that their way of life was being threatened, before revealing that the 'terrorist' group HardCorps had stolen a powerful weapon and that he intended to use it against them. Hester proclaimed to the gathered leaders that she and her people would stand against Blade and other big people. Consolidation of power Hester was called to the UGSF vessel Hannibal by its commanding officer, Admiral Elliot Swann, who was accompanied by a delegation of officers from the UGSF, the GTVA, the Army of Light and the Coalition. Swann explained that he arrived at TRAPPIST-1g as a friend and ambassador, seeking to give advice, which was for her to stop what she was doing. Hester asserted she was just standing up to "big people" but Swann countered that she was controlling them. When Hester insisted the Admiral was one of them, Swann reminded her that he was not with them and Hester agreed before saying that her family was killed by arrogant leaders who refused to act when needed, and that she would not allow that to happen again. After Swann explained the authority of the UGSF and lamented how the hardest choice was sometimes not using that power and insisted the independence of the people of TRAPPIST-1 without interference, Hester was suddenly urged by Tom via her earpiece to ask the question. Hester suddenly asked whether the UGSF and the GTVA allowed SinTEK's actions. Swann's silence was enough of an answer. Enraged at being lectured, Hester called Swann out for dooming her planet and her people. Swann claimed that her family doomed themselves. Hester also claimed that Swann wanted the monsters of the universe to run free, but Swann insisted that they would not let her rule the people of TRAPPIST-1. Infuriated, Hester asked if that was a threat. Swann called it a warning. The officers tried to calm the two down but Hester ordered Swann to leave her system along with the GTVA forces. Disappointed, Swann complied, and ordered Hester to get off from his own ship. At the south pole, Hester and Tom awaited the arrival of operatives from the Galactic Terran-Vasudan Intelligence and Special Operations Command, led by Liam Burke, who were ordered to bring them both before the war crimes tribunal in Beta Aquilae. Though they were successful in subduing them, the sudden arrival of the Shivans and the Unknown Intellectual Mechanized Species resulted in the destruction of the Neurotic Velocity. She then had every operative taken as "prisoners of war". Her captive of SOC operatives provoked the GTVA to declare war on her Regime. Several months later, Hester received word that the large UGSF, GTVA, Coalition and Army of Light fleets under the command of Lieutenant Paul Serene were on their way to take Hester to trial for her rule. She ordered her fleet, as well as the Shivans and the UIMS, to defend her planet before leaving for TRAPPIST-1e. When they reached space, Hester ordered Tom to fly to where she thought he would be safe. Hester then boarded the Hannibal and proceeded to kill the crew, but was eventually fired upon with a BFG-9000. She destroyed a BFG blast, and fought the rest of the crew. She even set the ship's autopilot to crash into the sun, and personally killed Swann, stabbing him multiple times after roaring at the UGSF Admiral that she won't let him threaten TRAPPIST-1 or take her home from her again. She escaped in an escape pod, moments before the UGSF battleship crashed into the sun. She returned to TRAPPIST-1g, and, upon seeing that the UGSF Dragoon IIS Hera Hilmar escaped with the surviving HardCorps personnel, she ordered the bombardment of every TRAPPIST-1 planet. One of Hester's confidantes noted that the Dragoon left the system before Regime forces could determine where it came from, and that recent intelligence that the UGSF were building and fielding ships that specifically attacked their assets. She ordered her confidante to alert all fleet commanders of that vessel, as well as to speed up on Project Bespin. Hester discovered that she was pregnant. Legacy A Unknown Intellectual Mechanized Species Doldva mothership was named after her. Not long after that, this ship came under attack, and got T-boned by a SSJ Gigas super-juggernaut. Physical Appearance Hester has long, copper coloured hair and grey eyes. Mancini describes her as having been a "pretty child". However, she has been extremely disfigured by Mancini's sword attack: a deep scar cuts across her face, twisting her mouth and destroying her nose. She has also lost an eye. John Blade, the Joyce brothers and the Doom Slayer refer her to as the bitch. Even Elliot Swann refers to as a kid. Characteristics Personality To the onlooker, Hester presents an intimidating persona: angry, hateful, and violent, with a fierce temper. Those who take the trouble to get to know her, such as her friend, lover, and later husband Tom Natsworthy, realise that this is a facade to disguise the more gentle and shy girl she would have been had life not treated her so badly. However, Hester undeniably feels little or no remorse from killing or injuring others, usually in self-defence or to protect those she loves. As Hester ages, she becomes harder and does not seem to care for people outside her family. She is willing to betray one of her generals to achieve her goals. She works as an assassin, and what makes her good at the profession is not her skill with weapons, but her ability to kill without remorse. Chronon Abilities Hester is identified as a "Shifter", an individual affected by Chronon particles, which allows them to exist and move freely within stutters in time. When Hester was exposed to the Chronon particles, she learned she could manipulate the Chronon field around her after a violent burst of energy prevented her enemies from shooting her daughter to death. Following this discovery, Hester began to manipulate and control time itself at will. As a shifter, Hester's ability allows Hester to become a blur while dashing, presumably moving fast enough outside the a normal time flow. Additionally, she can create shields to protect herself or freeze an isolated pocket of time to halt anything. Hester's powers allow her to operate within stutters in time; she can pull objects or people also affected by Chronon particles stuck inside the Zero State into her sphere of influence. If the individual or object has not been affected by Chronon particles, she cannot free them from the stutter. Hester's Chronon abilities grow stronger and develop the more she uses them. However, like all shifters, she runs the risk of being negatively affected by the Chronon energy, and eventually will require treatment to maintain a single, solid form in and out of stutters. Relationships Her family includes her husband Tom and daughter Wren Natsworthy. It is believed by anyone that her parents are Pandora and David Shaw. According to Galactic Terran-Vasudan Intelligence reports, however, her father, is Antonio Mancini himself, who had worked with her mother before she married. An old friend of Hester's is Martin Cross. He regards her as a daughter. Gallery Hester_Shaw_2.jpg Category:Corrupt Heroes